Threads from the deifyre flames dug into every part of Azrath’s body, his eyes, his ears, his mouth. Azrath threw his head back and screamed in agony—liquid deifyre scorching along his immortal Azura veins. She closed her eyes and pushed harder until it felt like she had nothing left, and then she pushed some more until he stopped struggling.
Sera opened her eyes. He was staring right into her, his eyes bright, exultant. “I’m no longer Azura,” he said. Azrath rolled his neck, testing his newly tensile strength, and stared in triumph at the pale gold deifyre surrounding him. “You stupid girl, you’ve only given me what I wanted … made me stronger!” He threw his head back and laughed. “I overestimated you, but you’re just a child after all.”
“You’re still evil,” Sera said. “And you’re wrong about two things. One, I’m no child. And two, I’m not stupid. Now that you’re no longer Azura, Azura weapons can kill you.”
“What Azura weapons?” he scoffed.
“The worst of all of them,” Kyle said from behind him, swinging Mordas down and up, cleaving through Azrath’s body.
The stunned look on Azrath’s face was priceless to Sera. He, the greatest of Azura Lords, had been bested by two teenagers. The two halves of his body shriveled, blackened, then fell to the ground.
Sera and Kyle stared at each other in silence.
“Did you know that would happen?” Kyle asked quietly. “That he wouldn’t be Azura anymore?”
“No.” She glanced down at the ugly blade in his hand, and her face tightened. “Thanks for … ” She trailed off, noticing that Jude and the other Ifrit were also gone.
“Anytime,” he said softly. “Your dad’s safe.”
Sera slumped over with relief, the chains falling loose Kyle shuffled his feet and then blurted out words as if he couldn’t keep them inside anymore. “Sera, I need to talk to you about Dev. It’s not—”
She stood, interrupting him. “Stop. I don’t want to hear any more lies. I need to get back to help with the demon. If it comes through, everything will be lost. And with Dev gone, the Trimurtas need all the help they can get.”
Sera raced off before he could respond, before he could see the tears that had sprung to her eyes. She hated him so much it hurt. And she hated herself even more for wanting to forgive him.
She heard Kyle running behind her and ran even faster, as if Ra’al himself were chasing her. As she rounded the bend to the lake clearing, she summoned her deifyre and jumped without looking, crashing into something and falling unceremoniously to the ground.
A smiling face filled her vision. Dev.
“But you’re dead!” Sera glanced back to Kyle, who’d stopped, panting, a short distance away. “You said he was dead,” she accused.
“He was. That’s what I was trying to explain, but you wouldn’t let me. He asked me to do it.”
Dev jumped off a snowy white horse. It folded huge feathered wings against its side and pawed at the ground impatiently. Dev had a huge golden crown on his brow and gold circlets around his arms. He held a massive sword in one hand. He was shirtless, his hair hanging past his shoulders, and his golden eyes were piercing. His arms and chest were the blue of the summer sky. A garland of marigolds hung around his neck.
“Hi,” he said with a smile. Sera stood mute, overwhelmed. “Once we had Nate, I asked him to do it. Kyle released me from my mortal body so I could return to Illysia and make the Trimurtas whole. And by releasing me, he also freed himself from Ra’al.” He touched a hand to her face. “You all right?”
“Yes,” she said slowly. She turned to Kyle but no words came.
He flushed. “That’s why they kept him unconscious, to keep him a prisoner so he couldn’t return. He was to be tortured but kept alive by Dekaias for eternity. I only figured it out after you went through the stones.”
Sera bit her lip, her remorse evident. “I’m so sorry I doubted you, Kyle. You’ve done more than anyone else ever could.” Kyle grew redder and stared at the ground. He mumbled something about not doing well with praise and raced off in Micah’s direction, who was battling a horde of snake-headed demons.
“Nice horse,” Sera said, turning back to Dev.
“His name is Devhadat,” Dev said, patting the horse.
“Dev, like you are.” Sera ran one hand along its sleek neck, her fingers meeting his and intertwining with them. Dev held her hand tightly, his thumb running across the rune on her palm. He raised it to his lips. “So, you’re back? Are you mortal?” Sera asked, breath forsaking her at his gentle touch.
A smile. “Not so much this time.” He glanced down at his body. “This avatara is called Kalkarys, the destroyer of darkness. It’s my incarnation against that.” He nodded to where Kali fought against Sophia and the others. It was still stuck in the portal but over half of its bulk lay at the edge of the lake. “They can contain it, but they cannot destroy it.”
“What are you waiting for? Go save the world, then,” Sera said. Dev raised a dark eyebrow.
“The Dark Realms certainly left their mark on you,” he said with another grin as he pulled himself onto the white horse. “I don’t remember you being this bossy—”
“Says the protector of the universe!” she shot back, rousing her deifyre. The tendrils flamed out around her as they raced toward the ring of light surrounding the demon.
Sera saw her mother fighting by Micah’s side. As fast as they dismembered the demon, his limbs grew back. Sophia’s face was strained and exhausted. “I don’t know how much longer we can hold it. It’s too strong. Our weapons barely damage it. Our only hope is to drive it back.”
“Hopefully not for too much longer,” Sera said softly. “Dev’s here.”
Sophia and Micah stared up to where Dev flew on the back of his steed, his face glowing with power, as he swooped down near the main head of the demon, swinging the massive broadsword in a downward stroke to the creature’s jaw. Brackish fluid rained from the wound as Dev swung again, tearing another gash in the demon’s throat. The chant of “Kalkarys” grew louder and louder as the demon screamed in agony.
Sera saw Kyle hacking away at one of the other heads and she flew over to him, blades in hand. He was drenched in what looked like slobber, and the stench from the beast’s mouth was crippling. She dispatched the three shadow demons crawling out from the lake.
“Why’d you do it?” she asked him. “Why’d you come back after every horrible thing I said to you?”
“You know why, Sera.” He flung Mordas into the demon’s eye and blinded it, dodging as a forked tongue slithered from the beast’s mouth. “When he asked me to do it, I knew you wouldn’t understand, and I couldn’t say anything there because the demon lords would have known what it meant.”
“I’m so sorry, Kyle.”
Kyle rolled his eyes and shot her an exasperated look. “Time and place … apologize later. Help me send this thing back where it came from!”
Sera was a blur of fire as she spun, her strokes cutting into Kali’s hide. The demon screamed and shot its tongue in her direction just as Kyle jumped, sword down, and severed it from its mouth. Its cry was horrible.
“It’s pulling back!” she heard someone shout.
Sure enough, Kali had begun lugging its bulk back into the hole. Every collective blow they dealt made it cower more like a beaten dog. Dev flew above them, his sword a blur of gold, and dove in their direction.
“This is it!” he shouted. Sera was confused. What did he mean?
As he swung under Kali, the tip of his sword traced a golden line across the demon’s throat, at the lowest point of its three heads. A huge tremor shook the ground and the lake around the demon boiled vigorously. Kali threw back its wounded neck and howled.
Just before the horse reached the ground, Dev swooped low and held his free hand out, pulling Kyle up onto the horse’s back behind him. Sera flew beside them. “What are you doing?”
“Kalias summoned the demon. He is the only one who can banish it.”
“You’re not going to kill it?”
“No matter how much we strike it, Kali will not die here.” Dev’s eyes were gentle and his voice soothing. Sera could feel the premonition of dread inside her.
“But … why do you need Kyle?” Her voice took on a desperate edge as she looked from one to the other. “The Trimurtas can banish it, can’t you?”
“I have to take it back, Sera,” Kyle said. “My blood summoned it. My blood must return it. It is the way of Xibalba.”
“Can’t you just cut your finger and drop some blood on it or something?”
A glimmer of a smile flashed across Kyle’s face. “It doesn’t work quite like that. Kali is tied to me. Azrath meant to sacrifice me to give life to Kali. To banish it or kill it, I must take it back. If I stay here, it does too.”
“But you belong here!”
The tear that slipped from the corner of his eye was her undoing. He made no move to wipe it away. “You’re wrong, Sera. I don’t. I never did. I belong there. I’ve always known that. I just wanted to be here with you.”
“Kyle, no.”
“I’ll see you again. I know I will.”
Sera turned to Dev. “Please don’t make him do this. Please, Dev.”
“I have to do this, Sera,” Kyle said. He clutched Mordas tightly as the horse flew closer to the gaping mouth of the largest head. “Just remember that I love you. Always have, always will.”
And then he jumped. Sera angled down to fly after him, but Dev reached over and grabbed her arm.
“Let me go,” she hissed. “I won’t let him do this.”
“It’s his choice, Sera.”
“You can stop him.”
“I cannot.”
Dev’s grip was unbreakable, his immortal strength impossible. Sera could feel herself flaring hotter and hotter until she was nothing but flame, and still he held her, drew her close. Deifyre tears bled from her eyes.
She could no longer see Kyle as Kali descended back into the abyss, and the surface of the lake glassed over once more as if nothing monstrous had ever disturbed its calm surface. Hundreds of voices cheered, but all Sera felt was a terrible ache.
Then she screamed, beating against Dev with every shred of force inside of her, crying as if her heart were breaking because she knew, without a doubt, that it was splintering inside of her chest.
They stayed on the white horse, suspended above a suddenly placid lake, the first stars winking against the black infinity of the clear night sky. A flurry of shooting stars sped past them, victorious celestial fireworks.
But Sera saw none of it. Dev held her tightly, murmuring into her hair, until her screams gentled to sobs and then nothing at all. After a while, he tipped her chin toward him, the sorrow in his own eyes almost as solid as hers. She stared down at the faces beneath them: her mother’s, her father’s, Micah’s, the Ne’feri, and swallowed past the knot in her throat. All she could see was Kyle—the only one who wasn’t there. A hole in her family.
“I can’t,” she choked.
“I’ll tell them,” Dev said. “Go, find your peace.”
“I don’t know where—”
He held her hands gently and pressed the two sigils on her palms together, enfolding them between his. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. The scent of marigolds filled her nostrils, and then everything was gone.
ETERNITY
She stared out at the horizon, watching the sun dip into it like the arms of a waiting lover. Red and purple, orange and gold streaked across the twilight sky in a riot of beauty. She dug her feet into the crumbly sand, the edge of a wave frothing over the tips of her toes. The air smelled of honey and salt and was still warm on her face.
It was perfect.
And it was empty.
She had no idea how long she’d been there, only that it had taken months of solitude to come to terms with the loss of her best friend. She’d run away, needing the silence to find a shaky peace within herself. With time, she’d come to understand that Kyle had had to accept what he was, and that Dev had been right—it had been Kyle’s choice to make. Not hers. Not anyone else’s. It hadn’t made it hurt any less, but day-by-day, it became easier.
Sera pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders, sensing the footsteps behind her long before he was near.
“Hello,” she said.
“Hello, Sera.”
“How long?”
“Five days.”
Was that all it had been in mortal time? Time was so different here in her world between the worlds. She felt hands on her shoulders and turned around, allowing herself to be embraced. She closed her eyes, savoring the only contact and comfort she’d had in months. The scent of marigolds and cinnamon spice curled around her.
“My family’s safe?”
Dev nodded.
“And Nate?”
“Back to his old tricks,” Dev said. “His film got shortlisted, and he said to tell you that you were right—people love zombies.” Sera grinned, hugging herself around her middle. Nate was the one she missed the most; she missed his wit, his wicked charm, his smile, his love.
“He’s something special, that boy,” she murmured. Dev slid his hand into hers as they walked along the shoreline. She studied him. He wore dark pants and a saffron yellow shirt. His hair was shorter but still curled into his collar. “You look different. Older.”
Dev didn’t answer. They continued walking in silence. “I have to return to Illysia.”
“Will I still see you?”
He stopped and held her face between his palms. “You can always find me here, Sera. But I want to ask you to come back to Illysia with me.”
His face was expressionless, but she could see the faint hope glimmering in his golden eyes. It would be so easy to say yes, and for a second, she hesitated. “Dev, I … can’t. I’m just not ready.”
He held a sad smile. “I thought you would say that, but still, you can’t stay here forever, my love.” He brushed a strand of hair out of her face. “Even if you don’t return with me, you do have to go back to your world some time, even if it hurts to do so. People you love need you.”
“I know. I just can’t face going back to life the way it was, only without Kyle.” Her voice broke on his name, the wound of his death still tender.
“Life and loss are the fabric of the realms.”
“Doesn’t make it hurt less.”
“No,” Dev agreed. “It doesn’t.” They walked in silence for a while. “You’re sure about Illysia? Unconditional love? Perfection? Me?”
She smiled at his exaggerated wink. “I’m sure.”
Dev grinned. “Well, in that case, I have a message for you. Wait, let me get this right.” He stared off into space for a second, tapping the side of his head thoughtfully. “The messenger said, ‘Time and place, and stop feeling sorry for yourself.’” He paused. “Oh, and that Sal’s is not the same without you. Who’s Sal?”
“Sal’s a diner,” she answered automatically. It took a minute for the words to sink in. “What did you say?” she whispered in disbelief, searching Dev’s face for truth. “Kyle’s alive?”
“After he banished Kali, he chose to become the Azura Lord of the Portal to the Dark Realms. The Trimurtas agree that this is good.”
“Wait, you mean what Azrath was?” Sera asked frowning.
Dev nodded. “He said at least he got to be near you.”
Sera knew her face reflected her confusion. “But how is that even possible? I thought Kyle died.”
“His mortal self did.”
“But if he’s an Azura Lord … ” She couldn’t finish her thought.
Had Xibalba claimed him?
Dev read her easily. “Samsar was an Azura Lord and one of our strongest allies. Your father, unlike his brother, was just, and those who met him were fairly judged.” Dev tipped her chin up. “The sins of the fathers do not always define the child. Judge him on his own merit.” He stared out at the water and the reddening
sky, his face pensive. “Sita chose you for a reason, for the balance she so valued. Evil is good’s shadow, a precarious balance at best; one cannot exist without the other. She understood that more than anyone. It’s why the mortals are so important. They are the tipping point, the fulcrum of our existence.” He sighed. He turned to stare at her, his eyes sad, knowing. “I love you, Serjana, but I can no more ask you to choose one or the other than I can change who I am. To understand everything is to forgive everything.”
“Buddha?” Sera murmured, her mind still whirling.
Dev nodded, then shrugged, echoing her earlier words. “Doesn’t make it hurt less.”
“I love you, you know,” Sera said.
“But you love him more.”
Sera shook her head. “It’s not that. He needs me more right now.” She touched his face. “You have my soul. He has my heart. Without either one of those, I’d die. I cannot choose between you any more than I can choose not to draw breath.” She grinned, her smile like sunshine, lighting her eyes and every part of her. “Plus, boyfriends are overrated anyway. These days, a girl needs to have options.”
But despite Dev’s startled grin, deep down, Sera knew that her words would only go so far. Dev knew her, longer and better than anyone. He’d waited for her an eternity and his love had never faltered, not even when thrown against her love for another. He deserved so much more than she could give him right then, but most of all, he needed to know just how much she still loved him. No matter what happened, no matter the lifetimes, some things would never change. She was, and would always be, his.
Sera stood on her tiptoes, her lips dipping into the soft warmth of his. The kiss was sweet. It was a kiss of hello and a kiss of goodbye, a kiss of love and of friendship. It was a bridge between the past and the present, a promise of the future.
It was a kiss for forever.
EPILOGUE
Sal’s was not crowded. In fact, it was empty except for the lone figure sitting in the back. The windows were filmy and crusted with years of singed-on grease. The smells of coffee and bacon and buttered toast wafted through the air. The faux-leather edges of the faded red booths were peeling, and the glare of the owner behind the coffee counter was distinctly not friendly.
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